A poll conducted by ICM for Sputnik news agency in April 2015 showed that only 13 percent of Europeans responding to the questionnaire think the Soviet Army played the key role in liberating Europe from fascism during World War II.
Up to 24 percent of European Union citizens could not say who played the major role in changing the course of the war.
“Contemporary public opinion is very widely manipulated by different kind of propaganda, and efforts of mass media,” Natalia Batova said.
“The role of the Soviet Army in the defeating the fascists is in the history and the history books and it is proved, it is proved by very high level leaders from all over the world, so nobody can just diminish that role,” Batova said, adding that her father was a participant in the Stalingrad battle, which lasted from August 1942 to February 1943.
The Soviet Union World War II casualties are estimated to exceed 27 million, both civilian and soldiers, according to historical estimates. The number of military dead amount to more than 8.7 million, which is more than half of the estimated 14 million total allied casualties.
The Russian Cultural Center in Washington, DC was founded in December 1999 by a Bilateral Agreement between the governments of the United States and Russia to promote friendly relations in the 21 century.
